The NHL Draft is an event every hockey player grows up dreaming about.

But for members of the Windsor Spitfires, the two-day event, which gets underway on Friday in Vancouver, is something players are approaching with caution as much as anticipation.

“It would be a dream come true to be selected,” Spitfires centre Tyler Angle said. “I’ve been thinking about this since I was a little kid and, now that it has finally come, I don’t know really what to expect.”

The Spitfires did not take the step forward in the standings many were anticipating in 2018-19. The club lost nine of its last 10 regular-season games and was swept from the playoffs in the first round.

So, when the NHL Central Scouting Bureau released its final rankings, Angle was the highest ranked of the four Windsor players to make the list and that was 167th

overall among North American skaters, which was down from 135th at the mid-term rankings.

That’s not a number guaranteed to make you one of the 217 players selected and why no one on last year’s roster is heading to Vancouver for the draft.

“I feel like, because it’s so far away and the uncertainty about if I’m being selected or not, it’s a good bet to stay home,” said Spitfires defenceman Nathan Staios, who made the final rankings at No. 182.

Most players were trying to figure out a way to avoid focusing on Saturday’s second day of the draft, which features rounds two through seven.

“I probably won’t follow the draft too closely,” Spitfires defenceman Grayson Ladd of Kent Bridge said. “My agent will give me a call, if I get drafted, but I don’t think I’ll be watching the whole draft. The draft is an exciting time for us players and it can be nerve wracking.”

A former OHL first-round pick, Ladd had his season cut short by a broken thumb and shoulder surgery, but hopes to be ready for the start of the season. He got limited viewing recognition from NHL Central Scouting.

“I try to not pay too much attention to it because I think it can affect your game both good and bad,” Ladd said of the draft. “So, I try and stay away from reading stuff on it. If I get drafted, it will be an honour to be selected, but, if I don’t, I’ll still keep pushing myself to be the best and hope to have a strong year and stay healthy and help the Spits as much as I can while still trying to achieve my goal of playing pro hockey one day.”

But when it comes to the draft, a player only needs one team to like what they see. That brings hope for players like defenceman Louka Henault, who was 216th in the final rankings after sitting 163rd in the mid-term ratings, and forward Daniel D’Amico, who fell to 217th in the final rankings from 164th in the mid-term rankings.

“There is a lot of good talent in this upcoming draft and I hope I fit the categories and get selected, but either way, the push for my goal will not stop me if I am not selected,” D’Amico said.

While players from last year’s team will hope for a call, forward Egor Afanasyev, who signed with the Spitfires last week after playing the past two seasons in the United States Hockey League, is a possible first-round selection on Friday.

“I’m just really pumped,” Afanasyev said. “It’s crazy, sometimes at night I’m thinking about the draft and what team’s going to draft me and walking up there (to get a jersey) and stuff, but I’m trying not to think about it and just trying to enjoy the moment.”